In 2025, fire departments serving Dayton responded to 47 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $125K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
195 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $356K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 25 | — | |
| 2022 | 55 | +120.0% | |
| 2023 | 43 | -21.8% | |
| 2024 | 25 | -41.9% | |
| 2025 | 47 | +88.0% |
For the 14 building fires Dayton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 45 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 17.8% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 8 | 17.8% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 8 | 17.8% | |
| 4 | Other | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Wall assembly | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 9 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 10 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 15.6% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Dayton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 23 | 51.1% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 3 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Radiated heat from another fire | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Candle | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Match | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 2.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Dayton departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $125,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $40,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $2,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Dayton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 773 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 125 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 57 | 16.1 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 53 | 15.1 mi | |
| 2013 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 45 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 45 | 33.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 40 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 30 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 29.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 25 | 34.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 25 | 9.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 21.4 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Kentucky cities with population within ±25% of Dayton. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Dayton.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.